1. Technical Field of the Invention
The present invention relates generally to communicating messages in a telecommunications network, and more particularly, to communicating prerecorded messages.
2. Description of Related Art
In addition to offering telephonic services, most telecommunications networks offer a communication service known as voice mail. Voice mail is a service whereby any party can leave a recorded voice message for the subscriber which is stored at a voice mail center. The voice mail center is usually connected as an Intelligent Peripheral (IP) to the telecommunications network and accessible by establishing a phone call to a specific directory phone number associated with the voice mail center. A party can leave a voice message for a subscriber by calling the specific directory phone number, or more commonly, be forwarded to the voice mail center when calling the subscriber""s phone number. The subscriber retrieves the message by establishing a call to the voice mail center using the directory phone number.
Since the introduction of voice mail, voice mail can be found in virtually all business telephone systems, as well as many residential telephone systems. Voice mail allows parties to leave messages from a suitably connected telephone, from anywhere in the world, which can also be accessed by any suitably connected telephone.
Individuals who are traveling or otherwise inaccessible by telephone for an extended period of time receive numerous important, and often lengthy voice mail messages. When reviewing numerous and highly detailed messages, the recipient must often take handwritten notes to remember the details of each particular voice mail message. Generally, the speed of oral communications exceeds the speeds of the recipient""s handwriting, therefore, the recipient must either write shorthand, or repeatedly listen to the same voice mail message.
One possible solution is the use of electronic mail (email) messages. Electronic mail is a system whereby two or more computers connected across a communications medium electronically transmit messages in the form of data. Common communications media include a Local Area Network (LAN) connection, or an Ethernet connection. However, the most popular communications medium is known as the Internet. The Internet is a network which joins together computer networks from educational institutions, the government, the military, and many private businesses in all parts of the world. Because the Internet is a worldwide network, a party in any part of the world can establish a connection to the Internet via a computer and send an email message to any other party on the Internet. The use of the Internet as a communications medium allows parties to leave messages from a suitably connected computer, from anywhere in the world, which can also be accessed by any suitably connected computer. Additionally, because the messages are text based, problems associated with handwriting notes are obviated.
Despite the foregoing advantages of email messages, a number of drawbacks exist. In order for a party to send an email message, the party must at a minimum have access to a computer terminal that is suitably connected. Although computers and data terminals are commonplace in most business environments, a significant number of residential homes do not have a computer. Additionally, many users may find typing and transmitting an email message to be more cumbersome and less intuitive compared to simply making a phone call and leaving an oral message. Accordingly, it would be advantageous if the accessibility of voice mail could be utilized by a party to leave a message for a recipient, while the textual qualities of email could be used by the recipient to receive the message.
Accordingly, it is an object of the present invention to send messages from a sending party to a recipient using a telephone terminal and a voice mail center.
It is also an object of the present invention to forward the message in the form of a textual data communication.
The present invention is directed to a system and method for delivering a message for a called telephone terminal, including a peripheral for receiving and recording a voice message for the called telephone terminal from a calling telephone terminal, a voice/text conversion module which converts the voice message to a text message, and a computer connected to the peripheral for transmitting the text message from the peripheral to a designated email address.